The Best Big Colleges
These are the top ranked large, public and private, four-year colleges in the United States as ranked by CollegeSimply. These schools all have undergraduate enrollment over 15,000. Leading the list for 2027 is Duke University. Learn how the Best Large Colleges rankings are calculated on our ranking methodology page.
Mississippi State University
- Public 4 Year
- Mississippi State, MS
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| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Mississippi State is a large public university known for undergraduate agriculture, engineering, and architecture. Starkville is a college town centered on the campus.
- SAT Range 1100-1350
- Avg GPA 3.58
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $18,478
Northern Illinois University
- Public 4 Year
- Dekalb, IL
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3.2 | 5 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
NIU is a large public university known for undergraduate business, education, and the visual arts. The residential campus is in the college town of DeKalb west of Chicago.
- SAT Range 940-1170
- Avg GPA 3.3
- Acceptance Rate 70%
- Net Price $14,243
Utah State University
- Public 4 Year
- Logan, UT
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5.0 | 2 reviews
Utah State is a large public university known for undergraduate agriculture, natural resources, and engineering. Logan is a college town in northern Utah's Cache Valley.
- SAT Range 1070-1290
- Avg GPA 3.63
- Acceptance Rate 92%
- Net Price $15,788
Illinois State University
- Public 4 Year
- Normal, IL
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4.8 | 4 reviews
- Apr 1 application deadline
Illinois State is a large public university known for undergraduate teacher education, nursing, and business. The residential campus sits in the college town of Normal, next to Bloomington.
- SAT Range 990-1210
- Avg GPA 3.41
- Acceptance Rate 88%
- Net Price $21,369
West Chester University of Pennsylvania
- Public 4 Year
- West Chester, PA
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| 0 reviews
West Chester is a public university known for undergraduate teacher education, music, and nursing. The campus sits in the historic borough of West Chester near Philadelphia.
- SAT Range 1100-1270
- Avg GPA 3.43
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $22,546
Kansas State University
- Public 4 Year
- Manhattan, KS
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| 0 reviews
Kansas State is a large public university known for undergraduate agriculture, animal sciences, and architecture. The residential campus anchors the college town of Manhattan in the Flint Hills.
- SAT Range 1060-1260
- Avg GPA 3.77
- Acceptance Rate 82%
- Net Price $20,527
Long Island University
- Private 4 Year
- Brookville, NY
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| 0 reviews
LIU is a private university known for undergraduate business, education, and nursing. The suburban Brookville campus occupies a former Gilded Age estate on Long Island's North Shore.
- SAT Range 1110-1350
- Avg GPA 3.36
- Acceptance Rate 86%
- Net Price $24,867
Ohio University Main Campus
- Public 4 Year
- Athens, OH
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4.5 | 4 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Ohio University is a large public university known for undergraduate journalism and communications. Athens is a classic college town built around the residential campus.
- SAT Range 1090-1290
- Avg GPA 3.59
- Acceptance Rate 85%
- Net Price $21,907
California State University Long Beach
- Public 4 Year
- Long Beach, CA
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5.0 | 1 reviews
- Nov 30 application deadline
Cal State Long Beach is a large public university known for undergraduate art and design, nursing, and business. The campus sits near the Pacific coast in the Los Angeles metro area.
- SAT Range 1020-1240
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 46%
- Net Price $10,607
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
- Public 4 Year
- Charlotte, NC
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| 0 reviews
- Jun 1 application deadline
UNC Charlotte is a large public university known for undergraduate business, engineering, and architecture. The suburban campus sits in North Carolina's largest city.
- SAT Range 1140-1330
- Avg GPA 3.57
- Acceptance Rate 80%
- Net Price $15,045
University of North Florida
- Public 4 Year
- Jacksonville, FL
-
| 0 reviews
UNF is a public university known for undergraduate nursing, business, and coastal biology. The suburban Jacksonville campus includes lakes and a large nature preserve with trails.
- SAT Range 1070-1270
- Avg GPA 3.89
- Acceptance Rate 53%
- Net Price $11,135
Wayne State University
- Public 4 Year
- Detroit, MI
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4.2 | 4 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Wayne State is a large public university known for undergraduate nursing, pharmacy, and business. The urban campus is in Midtown Detroit near the city's cultural district.
- SAT Range 1060-1270
- Avg GPA 3.42
- Acceptance Rate 81%
- Net Price $14,416
West Virginia University
- Public 4 Year
- Morgantown, WV
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4.0 | 4 reviews
WVU is a large public university known for undergraduate forensic science, engineering, and journalism. The campus spreads across a hilly college town in Morgantown along the Monongahela River.
- SAT Range 1010-1220
- Avg GPA 3.45
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $15,169
East Carolina University
- Public 4 Year
- Greenville, NC
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4.2 | 4 reviews
East Carolina is a large public university known for undergraduate nursing, health sciences, and education. The main campus is in Greenville, a college town in eastern North Carolina.
- SAT Range 1070-1240
- Avg GPA 3.33
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $13,755
California State Polytechnic University Pomona
- Public 4 Year
- Pomona, CA
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5.0 | 1 reviews
- Nov 30 application deadline
Cal Poly Pomona is a public polytechnic university known for undergraduate engineering, architecture, and agriculture. The hillside campus includes working farm facilities and an Arabian horse center.
- SAT Range 1010-1250
- Avg GPA 3.69
- Acceptance Rate 75%
- Net Price $11,940
Florida International University
- Public 4 Year
- Miami, FL
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4.1 | 7 reviews
- Apr 1 application deadline
FIU is a large public university known for undergraduate hospitality management and international business. The urban campus in Miami has a large Hispanic student population and strong Latin American ties.
- SAT Range 1070-1260
- Avg GPA 4.0
- Acceptance Rate 55%
- Net Price $11,178
San Jose State University
- Public 4 Year
- San Jose, CA
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5.0 | 3 reviews
- Dec 15 application deadline
San Jose State is a large public university known for undergraduate engineering, computer science, and business. The urban campus sits in downtown San Jose in the heart of Silicon Valley.
- SAT Range 1010-1240
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.35
- Acceptance Rate 85%
- Net Price $13,892
Appalachian State University
- Public 4 Year
- Boone, NC
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4.3 | 10 reviews
- Feb 1 application deadline
Appalachian State is a large public university known for undergraduate teacher education, business, and sustainable development. Boone is a mountain college town in North Carolina's Blue Ridge range.
- SAT Range 1120-1280
- Avg GPA 3.96
- Acceptance Rate 90%
- Net Price $14,978